


the perfect curse|b.jh + k.sg

by jichicken



Category: Red Velvet (K-pop Band)
Genre: AU - Fairytale, F/F, Fluff, Lady's Maid!Wendy, Mentions of Death, Originally Posted on Wattpad, Princess!Irene, Witch!Joy, Witch!Seulgi, Witch!Yeri, but its more like, i guess this kind of counts as enemies to friends to lovers???, i hate ur father to o shit ur cute to lets go sit by a waterfall and talk about my trauma, joohyun is too tbf, seulgi is an awkward panicked gay, seulgi lets joohyun ride her broom ;), slight angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-07
Updated: 2021-01-07
Packaged: 2021-03-17 15:21:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,863
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28602120
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jichicken/pseuds/jichicken
Summary: A princess is cursed so that no man will ever love her. Fortunately, she is a lesbian and is overjoyed when she finds out about this curse. When the witch finds out her curse backfired, she goes to confront the princess, but now finds her super attractive.Credits to @writing.prompt.s on Instagram for the prompt
Relationships: Bae Joohyun | Irene/Kang Seulgi, Kang Seulgi/Park Sooyoung | Joy
Kudos: 41





	the perfect curse|b.jh + k.sg

**Author's Note:**

> A/n: I've added to the canon that witches age very slowly so Seulgi is an adult when she curses Joohyun and only a couple human years older when they meet again

i.

On an unusually stormy day in March, most of the Kingdom had collected in the King's huge palace to meet the newborn daughter of the King and Queen, Princess Joohyun. 

Seulgi, one of the most powerful witches in the world, was perched on a turret just outside one of the windows looking into the vast hall, observing the party. Amongst the celebration, everyone had failed to notice Seulgi outside and her patience was beginning to wear thin as she waited for the event to end. She huffed, crossing and uncrossing her legs. The sound made her cat, a black bundle of fur with a white crescent moon in between her eyes and the unfittingly vibrant name of Pineapple, mewled and glared up at her owner.

"I know, I'm bored too." Seulgi ran her hand soothingly through Pineapple's shiny fur, "But we have to be patient."

The cat made another sound of annoyance but then closed her eyes, curling up into Seulgi and drifting into a peaceful sleep. Seulgi tutted, angry that she'd have to wait in the cold, on an uncomfortable stone platform, for possibly hours, completely alone. She fidgeted, picking up her broomstick that lay to her left and cleaning it with her thumb and finger, yawning.

The wind howled and swirled around the palace, rattling the windows and catching the attention of the King, who was standing near. He glanced up at the shaking panes and did a double-take upon seeing Seulgi staring down at him. She giggled at the obvious fear clouding his face, shooting him a wink and waving, a mischievous smile on her lips.

The King stared at her for a moment, his face paling, before hurriedly going to the front of the hall and announcing that, unfortunately, the celebrations had to be cut short and everyone needed to leave, immediately.

When the mass of confused people had flooded out, Seulgi, still chuckling slightly maniacally, waved her hand at the window and it sprang open in a flash of bright purple light.

"Come on Pineapple." Seulgi shook her kitten awake before jumping down onto the marble floor, Pineapple at her heels.

She landed as gracefully as a gymnast, her irate eyes piercing into the man stood before her.

"What do you want?" The King tried to sound brave but the shakiness in his voice gave away how he truly felt.

"Revenge." Seulgi spat, anger poisoning her usually smooth tone, "I told you when you killed her there would be consequences." Scalding tears threatened to spill over but she blinked them away, forcing emotions to leave her heart.

"So you're here to murder me and my family?"

"I would love to." she paused, looking out of the window with venomous desire burning in her body, but then composed herself and shook her head, "However, it's against witch law, I could be executed for it."

"So what will you do?"

Seulgi smirked, a malignant glint returning to her eyes; "I'm just here to make sure your bloodline doesn't continue."

Ignoring the King's confused glance, she wandered over to the cot where the princess, exhausted from a long day of meeting an endless stream of people, was settling to fall into a deep slumber, completely oblivious to the danger in the room.

"Stay away from her." The Queen formed a blockade between her precious daughter and the witch, her words sharp and unwavering.

Seulgi just sighed, tilting her slightly too big hat out of her eyes; "Your Highness, we can do this the easy way or the hard way, please don't try to stop me."

But the Queen stayed where she was, glaring at Seulgi.

"Fine," Seulgi spoke under her breath," whatever Her Majesty wishes."

With a quick flick of the wrist, silvery-blue sparks flew out of her fingers and froze the Queen in her place. In her peripheral vision she could see the King running towards her, sword drawn and raised, and, at lightning speed, whipped around to cast the same spell on him.

With a small giggle, she brushed past the paralysed Queen and over to the child who was now wide awake, stirred by the flashes of magic and noise.

Seulgi lightly caressed Joohyun's face, looking into her acorn-brown, glistening doe eyes; "Oh, she's so beautiful," she mocked the King and Queen who were straining to get to their child in vain, "it would be a shame if she could never have children."

Smirking at the pained realisation in her eyes, Seulgi lifted up her hands as red light rose out of them; "May the King and Queen Bae only have daughters and may a man never fall in love with Princess Bae Joohyun or any of her sisters.

Seulgi watched as the scarlet glow lifted up and darted into the now crying princess, revelling in the horror of the Royals as they could do nothing but watch their daughter being cursed.

When the angry light had dissipated, Seulgi scowled at the grating cries radiating from the child; "Shush." She placed a soft hand on the child's head and, in a soft glow of pastel pink, Joohyun fell into a deep, peaceful slumber once more, a small smile gracing her face.

Seulgi turned away from the crib, an evil grin appearing on her face once more as she walked back to the window where she'd come from, calling for her cat who followed obediently.

She turned back to the still-frozen King and Queen; "Don't worry, you'll be free in a few hours."

The King and Queen stared dumbly at her as she shot them a wink and then jumped up out of the hall and back onto the roof. She grabbed her discarded broom and hopped on, Pineapple perched behind her.

Seulgi flew off into the grey and stormy sky, cackling proudly the whole way.

ii.

_It had been almost 21 years since Seulgi had cursed Princess Bae Joohyun, yet the King and Queen had kept the spell a secret from the whole kingdom, including Joohyun herself, in the hopes that Seulgi had been bluffing to scare the Monarchs or that the magic hadn't worked. However, it had become apparent that their hopes were in vain as, despite growing up to become extremely beautiful, none of the boys in the kingdom had been the slightest bit interested in Joohyun. Not that the princess minded, as from an early age she'd realised that the only romantic feelings she'd felt were towards other women, although she'd kept this hidden from all but her closet friend. Now, however, Joohyun was approaching adulthood and it was the time for her to find a husband to inherit the throne with her. With a lack of plans, the King and Queen decided to lead the Princess on the inevitably fruitless search anyway, despite the obvious ending._

Joohyun awoke, cloaked in soft blankets and icy dread. It was her 21st birthday, something that wasn't feared by most. However, this milestone was when it was customary for royalty to travel the country in search of a suitable partner to marry into the family, and for Joohyun it meant the decision between having to tell her parents she was a lesbian or commit herself to the life sentence of a marriage with a man she would never love.

She rose out of her bed, rubbing her eyes sleepily, trying to ignore the anxiety bubbling in her chest. Joohyun walked over to the window where she pulled the curtains wide open and sat on the floor, looking up at the beautiful canvas outside of her palace.

Looking at the sky was always something Joohyun found relaxing, no matter the time of day, but there was something about the warm apricot glow of the early morning sun that she found particularly sweet and comforting. She basked in the gentle morning silence for a few minutes, before she was yanked out of her tranquil thoughts by a soft knock at the door.

"Come in!" Joohyun called out, her voice slightly scratchy from sleep.

The door opened to reveal Seungwan, her maid. As she'd been raised an only child, Seungwan was her only friend inside the confining castle walls and was also the only one who Joohyun had told about her sexuality.

"Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you~" Seungwan began to sing, her sweet voice making Joohyun giggle quietly.

The Princess made her way over to her friend and enveloped her in a warm hug. When they'd pulled away, Seungwan pressed a box with a ribbon attached to it into Joohyun's hand.

"Happy birthday, Joohyunie."

Joohyun nibbled on her lip, conflicted between being touched that her friend had bought her a present and guilt that she had spent money on Joohyun, despite not earning a lot.

She smiled gratefully, and thanked her sincerely, before opening the box to see what was inside. Joohyun grinned when she saw the contents, pulling her into another swift embrace and then gently getting out a chain with a bunny charm hanging from it. She said thank you again before putting it on, admiring it in the mirror.

Seungwan cleared her throat; "Are you excited for today?" She asked, jokingly.

Joohyun caught her gaze in the mirror and rolled her eyes; "What do you think?"

Seungwan just laughed in response and briefly went out of the room to get Joohyun's outfit for the day.

"The Queen insists on you wearing this today." She walked back into the room, a bundle of material in her arms making Joohyun sigh, knowing it was going to be something that suited her mother's extravagant taste rather than her own minimalistic preferences.

"She's also employed some makeup artists to do your makeup." Seungwan informed the Princess as she began helping her change into the heavy material, "From what I've seen they're planning to do a lot." She grimaced and Joohyun pulled a similar expression, wondering why her mother was forcing her to dress up this way.

Unbeknownst to Joohyun, the Queen had employed the best makeup artists, stylists and hairdressers in the country who she had confided the Princess' situation into and they'd spent the last six months planning in an attempt to make Joohyun as desirable as possible.

The morning went by in a blur and, before they knew it, Joohyun and Seungwan were shoved in a carriage and shipped to their first destination.

Weeks full of parties and dinners and teas flew by and, unsurprisingly, the Queen's plot to make Joohyun attractive to men by dressing her in flamboyant clothes and a mask of makeup, had failed. While most of the women in each place had been complimentary of Joohyun's beauty, none of the men had wanted any part in her marriage and had point-blank refused even after begging or bribery. It seemed Seulgi had been very thorough with her curse. The Royal family felt humiliated with each rejection and Joohyun didn't know whether to be offended or relieved at the growing probability of her never being married.

About halfway through the tour, the King and Queen decided that it was time to tell the Princess the truth, as they were under the impression she'd been heartbroken by each man who'd turned her down.

One night, after a particularly harsh refusal, they ushered her into their bedroom and sat her on the bed. The Queen grabbed Joohyun's hand as the King began to tell the story of how Seulgi had cursed her as a baby. Although she felt angry that her parents had taken her on a tour that was destined to humiliate her, she couldn't help but feel extremely happy that she was no longer the obligation to fall in love with a man.

The King finished his story and gave a sombre look to his daughter, expecting tears and maybe even anger. However, Joohyun's face broke into a glowing smile, and the King and Queen exchanged baffled glances.

"Are you okay, my child?" The Queen placed a hand on Joohyun's forehead, "Are you in shock?"

The Princess' face became serious again as she shook her head.

Joohyun took a deep breath; "Mum, dad. I have something I need to tell you."

iii.

_A day later, the news of the first openly gay Royal in the country's history spread around like wildfire. Joohyun's parents were shocked at first, however, deciding to push aside the issue of who would inherit the throne after them and research possible distant relatives when they arrived home, were pleased that their daughter had finally opened up to them and were only upset she'd been afraid to do it sooner. The tour of the country had been immediately cancelled and the Royal family had recently arrived home, and agreed to allow an ecstatic Joohyun to find a girl to settle down in her own time._

Seulgi was jolted awake by a loud bang sounding from the kitchen. Grumbling, she stomped down the stairs and burst open the door, to see her housemate, Yerim, mixing some strange liquids in her cauldron.

"Yerim!" Seulgi yelled, "What are you doing?"

"Science."

Seulgi groaned, looking around the room to see vibrantly coloured substances splattered everywhere and an angry burn mark on the ceiling; "I thought I told you no making potions in the kitchen."

Yerim was Seulgi's younger cousin and roommate. At first, she'd been reluctant to live with the reckless girl, but she needed to pay the bills and witchcraft didn't earn as much money as when her great grandmother was her age.

With a quick hand movement and a jolt of silver, the multicoloured stains vanished, the burn mark on the ceiling cleared and Yerim's cauldron and her bottles floated to the potions room where they neatly stacked themselves away.

"You really need to be more considerate, we only age every ten years, we're going to be living together a very long time you know."

Seulgi hated scolding Yeri, she felt like she was becoming a mum prematurely, but sometimes the girl really got on her nerves.

"Sorry, Seul." She drawled out, "Want some tea?" 

That was Yeri's peace offering, whenever she'd broken something or made a mess, she always made Seulgi some tea.

"When am I ever going to say no?" Despite all of her faults, Yeri made the best cups of tea Seulgi had ever tasted.

Yerim used magic to boil the kettle and get two mugs out of the cupboard, although she almost dropped one of them on the floor.

"Idiot..." Seulgi lightly hit the back of her cousin's head, although she was mostly joking. For a 17-year-old, Yerim was very advanced in magic. Talent just ran in the family.

"Have you heard about Princess Joohyun?" The younger girl asked absentmindedly, concentrating on levitating the cup of tea to Seulgi without dropping it.

Seulgi grabbed onto the mug and narrowed her eyes; "What about her?"

"She's gay."

The porcelain cup crashed to the floor, spilling a golden-brown blanket of tea over the tiles; "What?"

"Seulgi, look what you've done."

Yeri raised her hand to fix the mess but Seulgi caught her arm; "What do you mean she's gay?"

"Uhh...she likes girls." Yerim rolled her eyes, "She told her family on the tour and they've taken her home."

Hot anger surged through Seulgi; "So that means-"

"You actually helped her by cursing her. If it wasn't for you, she would have been forced into an unhappy marriage and lived a miserable life." Yerim finished her sentence with a giggle, amusement dancing in her eyes.

Seulgi made an explosive noise which caused Yeri to burst into more peals of laughter. She summoned her broom; "I'm going right over to that palace right now and I'll...I'll..."

"You'll do what? Curse her again? Make it so that no girl will ever fall in love with her? I bet that would make her really upset." Yerim mocked her older cousin, a huge smile on her face.

"You know what, maybe I will." Seulgi yelled, hopping onto her broom and flying out of the window, trying to ignore Yeri's relentless laughter.

She muttered angrily to herself the entire broom ride to the palace, her ears turning red. She flew until she saw the turret she'd been sat on all of those years ago, the turret which the Princess now used as a bedroom.

Joohyun was currently inside her bedroom, unpacking from her long trip in peace. Her parents were asleep but somehow she couldn't coax herself into slumber, still too excited by the past few days she'd had.

She swiftly turned around as she heard her window being flung open in a flurry of lavender sparks, quickly followed by Seulgi shooting into the room, before braking harshly and stumbling off the broom.

"Who are you?" Joohyun asked sharply, fear climbing up her throat.

"I'm Seulgi, the witch that cursed you as a baby and..." Seulgi was about to launch in a full rant at the Princess but found herself trailing off when she stared into the same huge, deep-chocolate eyes that seemed to glitter as they had when she'd looked into them 21 years ago.

"What are you doing in my house?" Joohyun's voice raised in pitch.

"You're pretty." Seulgi blurted out randomly.

 _'Hold on, what did I just say?'_ Seulgi cursed her mouth for acting of its own accord.

Meanwhile, Joohyun was having her own panic in her thoughts; _'Was that flirting? Surely not, why would the witch with a vendetta against my family flirt with me?'_

Realising she'd paused for far too long, Joohyun scrambled to force some words out; "Uhm, t-thanks. You're very beautiful yourself."

Seulgi was shocked to find herself smiling coyly, a rose blush dusting her cheeks. Flustered, she reached for something funny to say rather than just spew out random, almost creepy, compliments, but it seemed her brain had turned to lead.

It felt like she was under a spell, ironically.

Seulgi quickly had a mental argument with herself as to whether Joohyun was also flirting with her, or if she was just being polite by responding to Seulgi's compliment. Then, remembering she could just hex Joohyun to forget this meeting ever happened if she was rejected, Seulgi decided to be brave;

"So I heard you were gay."

 _'Wow, real smooth, Seul.'_ She could practically hear Yerim mocking her and silently thanked the stars she hadn't followed Seulgi, as she sometimes did.

"Uh, yeah, I guess I am." Joohyun scrabbled for words, her eyes darting away from Seulgi's bewitching gaze.

"That's great. I mean, it did sort of mess up my plan but um..." Seulgi trailed off, willing herself to be brave but her mouth forbidding her.

"Oh, is that what you're here for? To put another curse on me?" Joohyun should have been a lot more scared than she was, but she couldn't match the adorably awkward Seulgi who stumbled over her words to the powerful and threatening witch that she'd been told about.

"Um, well, originally yes. But now..." Again, Seulgi's words withered away at the end of the sentence.

"But now..." Joohyun prompted.

Seulgi took a heavy intake of breath, preparing her hand behind her back to perform a memory charm "I kinda want to take you on a date."

Joohyun's mind span 100 miles an hour, trying to comprehend this new territory. ' _So she had been flirting.'_ Nervousness blushed her face as she snapped her gaze to the girl, seeing that Seulgi was just as flustered, if not more, than her.

"A date sounds good." She barely managed to stutter the words out before Seulgi, a huge grin on her face, bounded over to Joohyun and grabbed her hand, leading her to the window.

"W-wait, let me just write a note to my mum in case they wake up and wonder where I've gone."

She hastily scribbled out a note to her parents, saying she'd gone out with a friend and not to worry as she'd be back soon.

Before she knew it, Joohyun was sat on the back of Seulgi's broom and flying away from her home. Seulgi was ecstatic and couldn't believe that she was actually on a date with the Princess. Joohyun however, was terrified. She'd never ridden a broom before, so was hanging onto Seulgi with an iron grip, occasionally glancing below her and, when her heart jumped into her throat, squealing slightly and burying her head into Seulgi's back.

Noticing this, she glanced back at Joohyun smirking slightly when she saw her; "First time riding a broom?"

Despite herself, Joohyun rolled her eyes and replied dryly; "No I have many witch friends and broomstick is my preferred mode of transport. Of course it's my first time!"

Seulgi shouted a laugh, making the broom sway to and fro a bit in the sky.

"Agh! Don't do that!" Joohyun yelled, punching Seulgi's arm and squeezing her eyes shut.

Seulgi giggled, but kept the broom stable and, secretly enjoying the way the Princess was cuddling into her, conveniently forgot to mention that there was an enchantment on the broom that prevented anyone riding it from falling off.

After what seemed like an eternity to Joohyun, they finally landed outside a forest and Seulgi helped her off the broom. Fingers still intertwined, they walked into the emerald cave of trees and onto a dewy carpet of lime grass dotted with beautiful spring flowers in a variety of hues. To her left, Joohyun saw a gleaming waterfall, sparkling in the sun that smiled in the crisp blue sky where a few soft clouds floated peacefully.

She turned to Seulgi who she saw was watching her patiently, anticipating her reaction.

"This place is..." Joohyun racked her brain for something that could sum up the awe she felt, "breathtaking."

Joohyun was unsatisfied with her words, but Seulgi seemed more than pleased at her reply, her smile as blindingly stunning as the sun.

"Come on, I'll show you my favourite place." She pulled Joohyun over to two huge tree stumps side by side and sat on one, gesturing for Joohyun to do the same.

After a few minutes of awkward small talk, neither party really sure what to say, the conversation began to flow like a blissful river. The sun gently rose in the sky and then fell again, but they never stopped talking. 

As much as Joohyun tried to push down her curiosity, she couldn't help how the question she'd been wondering for a few days kept crawling up her throat until, in a moment of serene silence, she blurted out;

"Why did you curse me?"

Seulgi looked down at the grass and began threading it through her fingers, carefully contemplating her answer before answering;

"Your father, he did something I could never forgive and I wanted revenge so-"

"You made it so our bloodline could never continue, yes my parents told me that." Joohyun finished for her, her tone impatient, "but I want to know what my dad did that was so bad you wanted to curse me."

"He killed someone I loved very much."

Joohyun's eyes softened, letting Seulgi carry on in her own time.

After a moment of trying to compose herself, she carried on, "Her name was Sooyoung, she was the first person I was ever in love with. She was my cousin's best friend, which is how I met her." Her words streamed out carelessly, "She was the kindest person I've ever known and one of the most powerful witches, although she never believed in using it to hurt anyone." Seulgi's head lowered in shame, "She'd be so disappointed if she knew what I'd done to you."

After a brief pause, Seulgi continued, "One day, many years ago, your father waged war on us witches and wizards after an incident where a non-magical person got accidentally caught up in a fight between a group of wizards and died. After a few months of this war where many of our kind got killed, we decided to elect a leader to go and talk with the King to try and sort out a peace treaty. Sooyoung's family was incredibly influential among our kind, however, her parents had both been victim to the war, leaving her the only member of her family left. Despite being young, she was very diplomatic and a talented witch, so we decided to send her to meet with the King."

Seulgi's lower lip trembled, and Joohyun reached out to grab her hand, stroking Seulgi's knuckles with her thumb comfortingly. She gave her a watery smile, before continuing in a strained voice, "Sooyoung was so excited to go and talk to him. She'd been devastated by the loss of her parents and couldn't wait to live up to their achievements. She went in the palace alone, and visited the King who was surrounded by a dozen armed guards, however, she promised not to use magic in any way."

A single tear stained Seulgi's cheek as she took a shaky breath, "And I know she would have kept her word, but she was afraid by all of the soldiers and their weapons so her arm twitched slightly." More tears streamed from her eyes, but Seulgi refused to stop talking, though her voice became more strained, "She wasn't trying to curse them, but the King was scared too so ordered his soldiers to kill her at the slightest movement. And they did." Seulgi fully broke down, burying her face in her hands as Joohyun encircled her arms around her back, trying to comfort the girl; "I was devastated when I found out, my entire world collapsed and I vowed to take revenge on the King who took my Sooyoung away from me."

Seulgi finished her story with a choking sob and Joohyun pulled the girl's hands away from her face, using her own fingers to wipe away her tears, "Seulgi... I don't know what to say. I'm _so_ sorry." 

"No, no. It's not your fault." Seulgi's words gave into cries as she broke down completely, "I'm sorry I tried to hurt you." 

Joohyun enveloped her in a hug, holding on tightly to her with one arm and raised up the other to carefully stroke Seulgi's hair, "Shush, shush, it's okay. I forgive you." A small smile tugged at her lips as she placed her chin on top of Seulgi's head, "You actually helped me." 

Seulgi choked out a half-laugh, half-sob, sniffling as she tried to compose herself. Once she had calmed down slightly and stopped crying, they both sat up. Joohyun rested her head in the crook of her neck and Seulgi placed her hand in Joohyun's. They sat together in comfortable silence, watching the rainbow of flowers at their feet sway gently in the breeze. 

Eventually, Seulgi cleared her throat and began to talk about something else, and the conversation started again, flowing as effortlessly as before until she was as smiley and lively as usual.

The azure sky eventually melted away as the setting sun dyed it a mix of glowing amber and candied rose, staining the clouds with a similar hue. Joohyun's speech had become slower as the time went on, and, as much as she tried to ward off the whispers of sleep creeping into her body, she couldn't fight off the exhaustion and her lack of sleep eventually took over her as she began nodding off onto Seulgi's shoulder.

Seulgi didn't notice until she asked Joohyun a question and, after receiving no reply, looked down to see the slumbering Princess, her face tired but peaceful. Smiling gently to herself, she picked up Joohyun in her arms to carefully carry her back to her broom, where they flew back to her palace.

Somehow, throughout the entire ride home, Joohyun never woke up and they arrived safely back into her bedroom. Seulgi picked her up and gently lay her on the bed, pulling the covers around her. She placed a quick kiss on her forehead and then turned away to scribble a note for Joohyun when she awoke.

Climbing back onto her broom, she couldn't help but grin to herself, happiness bubbling in her stomach. Although she knew she would have to suffer through so much teasing when she returned home and had to tell Yerim she'd ended up taking the Princess on a date rather than getting her revenge, she couldn't help feeling the mixture of love and elation in her heart that hadn't been there in a long time. Still smiling to herself, Seulgi started her broom and, carefully shutting the window behind her, vanished into the warm sunset.

Joohyun woke up many hours later, rubbing her heavy eyes as she looked around her room, dazed from sleep. Memories of the day with Seulgi came flooding back and she couldn't help but wonder if it was all a strange but perfect dream. She looked to her bedside table to see the note Seulgi left her before she left with a cartoon kitten wearing a witch hat drawn in the corner. A smile spreading across her face and delight climbing up her throat, she read the writing;

_Princess,_  
_Hope we can see each other again soon._  
_-Seulgi x_


End file.
